Pre-planning leads to a favorable outcome

August 03, 2007|By Dennis Foster, Special to the Farm Forum

There are differences between pre-mortem and post-mortem estate planning. Pre-mortem, of course, refers to planning what you can do while living. Post-mortem is what your family will be forced to do if you failed in pre-mortem planning. Pre-planning leads to a favorable outcome; post-planning amounts to a salvage operation, at best. If the terminology used makes you a bit uncomfortable, it is meant to. Unless you have the keys to the mystery of immortality, the sooner you face the facts the better. Once we are mature enough to face our own mortality, then we can get on with living a happy and productive life. If you have figured out a way to become immortal, I wish you would share it with the rest of us. If not, your options are very clear ... start planning now or simply put it out of your mind and let your family deal with it when the time comes. By taking what currently would seem to be the easy path, could have severe consequences for your family. Either way, it's your legacy and your choice. I'm going to go out on a limb here and predict that most families would prefer a person start sooner rather than later. If you're running a family farm business, there are others involved who will be directly affected by your actions. Those who have chosen to remain on the farm have a lot at stake, and their entire future can be riding on your decisions. Doesn't it make sense to provide them (and yourself) peace of mind? That leads us back to the original question: Are you going to go the pre- or post-mortem route? Once you are gone, all of the potential good you could have done goes with you. Even waiting until extreme old age and or health concerns set in, will largely remove most of the viable planning options available to you as a younger or healthier person. This is truly a shame, as we all have the opportunity to do something about this. Some families have the foresight to plan; unfortunately, most don't. This is not intended to be an exercise in finger pointing. It is meant to stir you into action. We all have excuses as to why we don't get around to planning. Some even sound viable on the surface. But in reality, they are exactly that - excuses. Woulda, shoulda, coulda, just won't cut it. Today is the tomorrow we talked about yesterday. The biggest hurdle is to make the commitment to do something - now. Once you have set a goal to begin the process, the pieces will fall into place much quicker and easier than you might anticipate. The advice, expertise and tools to complete a comprehensive plan are available, if you choose to use them. Without this commitment, your intentions amount to nothing more than unrealized hopes and dreams. Even if you have done some planning in the past, I would encourage you to review it with a knowledgeable adviser. There have been many changes in the last few years; it's wise to make sure that your plan still works for all parties involved. This column is not intended to substitute for qualified legal, tax or financial counsel. As always, you should seek experienced and competent advisers to assist in your family's planning efforts. Dennis Foster can be reached at The Dornbush Agency, Inc., 605-225-3774 or 1-800-207-0747. His column is published the first Friday of each month.